Falling Into Place
by devinerose
Summary: It's been 17 years since Angell's death, and Flack hasn't been the same since. But what happens when Lucy Messer brings home a new boyfriend? It will unleash a secret that rocks the team to the core. All characters.
1. Prologue

_You held her looser than you would have if you ever could have known_

That morning had been like all the others, she had woken up before him, and attempted to slink out of his arms, only to have him stop her by tightening his grasp around her with a smile, before his eyes had even opened. She coaxed her way out with promises of meeting later, and that she would call. They whispered their goodbyes, and soft, hushed 'I love you's before she walked out of his front door, forever.


	2. Dinner Dates

**The itallics in the prologue are from Dusk and Summer by dashboard confessional! And the two characters in the beginning were Flack and Angell!**

**To my ATLP readers who are mad I'm posting this before I post a new E+B ch, I wrote this to help get OVER my writer's block with ATLP and it worked, so the new ch will be up soon so don't get mad at me for writing this, cuz if i hadn't you wouldn't be getting a new ch in ALTP!!**

**I OWN NOTHING!!**

_Seventeen Years Later:_

"Lucy has a new boyfriend." Lindsay said as she stirred a pot of boiling water.

"New?" Danny asked surprised, as he set the plates out on the table, "She had an _old_ boyfriend? Why is it that I didn't know about this?" He asked stopping what he was doing.

"Because of the thoughts running through your head right now." Lindsay said with a laugh, "Now finish setting the table, and you're going to need another place setting, he's coming to dinner." Lindsay informed him before leaving the kitchen. Danny just stood there shocked for a moment, he pictured his young daughter. She was beautiful she had her mother's straight dirty blond hair, with his blue-green eyes, then out of no where, a grungy man with a motor cycle stood next to her and wrapped his arms around his precious daughter, he quickly snapped out of his daydream,

"Woah woah, uh Linds, I don't like this." He said shaking his head and raising his hands in true Danny fashion.

"No father does." Lindsay agreed.

"I do recall saying she wasn't allowed to date until she was married." He said folding his arms in front of his chest.

"Even you're too smart to see any logic in that." She said looking over her shoulder, furrowing her brows and smiling at him as she changed her shirt.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Danny asked offended and slightly hurt, Lindsay just laughed again and made her way over to him.

"He's coming over and you're just going to have to deal with it Messer." She finished the conversation by giving the pouting Danny a kiss on the cheek.

"Fine, but I'm not going to like it." He complained following her out. He nearly bumped into her in the hallway as she had stopped and turned around to face him. She took as step towards him until their bodies were barely an inch apart.

"I'll make you a deal." She said, her voice laced with wanting.

"Uh hun." Danny pressed, smiling at this turn of events.

"You give the new guy a break," Then she leaned in closer to whisper in his ear.

"And once everyone's asleep, I'll let you" He grinned down at her as she whispered unmentionables in his ear.

"I guess that sounds fair." He said considering the alternative. They had a pretty active love life, but it was always fun to spice things up every once in a while. Danny looked up and down the hallway to make sure no one was coming before he bent down and kissed his wife. It wasn't long before Lindsay Messer found herself sandwiched tightly between the wall and her husband. His lips trailed down from her jawline, down to the crease where her neck met her shoulder,

"Mmmh, Danny." She moaned, she could feel him smile against her skin. Before he could do anything else, a timer went off in the kitchen. Much to their dismay both realized they had to stop.

"Later." Lindsay promised with a meaningful smile. Danny grinned and let her go so she could tend to dinner.

"Oh and tell Taylor dinner's almost ready." She called from the kitchen. Danny walked across the hall and knocked on their son's door before opening it.

"Taylor, it's almost time for dinner." Danny told the little boy who was sprawled out of his bed doing his homework.

"Okay, but could you help me with this?" The boy asked gesturing to his homework. Danny nodded, entering Taylor's room and gesturing for him to move over so he could sit down.

"Alright, what do you need help with?" Danny asked as he examined his 10 year old son's homework. Taylor pointed out which problem he was having trouble with.

"Fractions, fractions, oh yeah, ok I see." Danny said as he figured out how to do it in his head. He showed his son how to do it, then they tried another problem, they stopped when they heard the front door open and the sound of voices.

"Hey dad?" Taylor asked as they walked to the kitchen.

"Yeah?"

"I don't have school next Tuesday, can I come to work with you?" He asked hopefully.

"Maybe, depending on what we're doing. And you have to ask your mother." Danny said.

"Mom!" Taylor called as he ran ahead of Danny to the kitchen.

The kids had always known the type of work their parents did. It was no secret, they knew their parents investigated murders. Once after Lucy tried to meet up with a stranger she met online, Lindsay brought her into work one day to show her exactly what could have happened to her. Taylor had always loved going to the lab, seeing how they used science to catch bad guys. He and Adam had grown pretty close and Adam considered him to be his little protégé. When he informed Danny of this, he laughed and said it was fine so long as he wasn't giving out his advice on women.

"Um, Danny," Lindsay called him, her voice filled with worry. Danny sprinted the last steps into the kitchen, where he saw Lucy and her new boyfriend with their backs to him and Lindsay in front of them facing him with Taylor by her side and a bouquet of freshly bought flowers in her hands. He looked at her puzzled, she looked quickly to the boy standing next to his daughter, then back at him. Confused, he proceeded as he normally would,

"Lucy Goosey." He said using his daughter's childhood nickname, Lindsay bit back as laugh, and Lucy eyes widened in fear, yet she just smiled. She had a feeling her Dad would be doing something like this.

"Hi Dad." She said kindly and they hugged as they always did when she came home from school. Even after they pulled apart Danny still kept a secure arm around her shoulders as he turned to their guest. When he saw the boy he froze in his tracks, this was what Lindsay had been worried about. The boy in front of him was tall and lean, his skin was slightly sun kissed, with tousled jet black hair and thick red lips, but it was the eyes that held his attention, the ice blue eyes.

"Dad, this William Gerard," Lucy introduced, "Will, this is my dad, Danny Messer."

"It's an honor to meet you Mr. Messer." William said holding out his hand for Danny to shake.

"You too." Danny said shaking the hand as he stared into the familiar blue eyes.

"Lucy's told me all about you." The young man said, unsure of how to react to Danny's unusual behavior. This statement shook Danny from his stupor and he realized he was staring.

"That makes one of us," Danny said looking down at his daughter, who rolled her brown eyes and smiled up at her protective father. William blushed,

"I'm sorry Sir." He apologized formally.

"Oh well, girls don't tell their father anything these days." Danny joked, purposely looking away from his daughter, who punched him in the side with a grin.

"Yeah right." She laughed.

"Lucy, dinner will be ready in a little bit why don't you give Don-um sorry Will a tour of the house." Lindsay suggested with a warm smile, despite her mess up. Something Danny had picked up on instantly. Lucy nodded and took Will by the hand, leading him out of the kitchen.

"Taylor, go wash you're hands and get ready for dinner." The little boy nodded and raced off to the bathroom.

"You see what I see?" Danny whispered walking up to Lindsay once everyone was gone. Lindsay shook her head trying to clear her brain.

"No way, it isn't possible, you and I of all people should know that." She said, but it sounded more like she was convincing herself.

"Right, it's just a coincidence." Danny said in agreement, but each knew the other didn't believe it, nevertheless they had no choice as what they were considering was impossible.

Lindsay scooped pasta and sauce onto the plates Danny handed her one by one, neither saying anything. Once the plates were on the table everyone was called to dinner.

"So Will where do you go to school?" Danny asked, eager to get down to the interrogation.

"Same as Lindsay." He answered simply.

"And you're a Sophmore too?" Lindsay asked curiously. Will nodded,

"His birthday's exactly 7 months after mine." Lucy informed them before they could ask. Danny and Lindsay's eyes met for a moment before each turned back to the young couple.

"Oh, that's nice." Lindsay commented with a polite smile.

"So have you always lived out here?" Danny asked,

"Um no, I was born in Iowa, but my mom and I moved here at the beginning of the school year." Will said before taking a bite of his pasta.

"That must have been hard. Did you like it there?" Lindsay asked.

"Yeah, I liked Iowa fine, but being in the city just feels right, you know, like it's in my blood, or something hokey like that." He said, smiling as if he thought he sounded silly.

"Doesn't sound hokey to me, unlike my wife _Montana_, I've been here since birth, still seems pretty nice, though she might disagree." Danny said teasing Lindsay, who smiled at him. They all laughed, and Will smiled appreciatively.

"If I might ask how long have you been together?" Will asked the two of them curiously.

"Now that's a very long story." Lucy answered for them, Danny and Lindsay smiled at each other as they both recalled how they met and fell in love.

"We've been married since before she was born." Lindsay answered pointing to her daughter as she smiled.

"Yeah, but not long before." Taylor answered, Danny reached out and playfully cuffed him on the back of the head.

"Respect your mother." He said warningly.

"Oh he's fine," Lindsay said, taking Danny's hand in hers, "We got married a couple of weeks before we had Lucy." Will smiled at them,

"What about your parents?" Lindsay asked him politely,

"Oh, I just live with my mom. My Dad died when I was really little, he was a cop." Will said easily.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Lindsay said sadly.

"It's no problem, I never really knew him, but mom said he was a really good guy." He said, lightening the mood at the table. Conversation continued to flow until all the plates were clear of food, and it was time for Will to leave.

"Dinner was amazing, thank you for having me." Will complemented as he slid into his coat.

"Once again it was a pleasure to meet you both."

"Likewise." Lindsay said kindly, pulling the young boy into a hug. When Danny was silent she elbowed him in the side,

"Yeah, pleasure." He said with a smile, "As a matter of fact let me walk you to the door personally. Lindsay rolled her eyes and returned to the kitchen, while Danny wrapped an arm around the poor boy's shoulder and led him to the door.

"Look, if you hurt her," Danny began with a smile, "You should know that she has three uncles and a godfather who would absolutely love to make your life hell when it comes to the justice system, you got that?" Danny said, then laughed to make it look like they were talking about the Knicks or something trivial like that.

"Alright Dad," Lucy said walking up to them, "That's enough threatening for the evening."

"What?" Danny asked innocently, "We were just discussing-"

"I heard you, although nice cover up with the laugh, I'm sure mom believed you." Lucy said laughing sarcastically,

"Come on," She said turning to Will, "I'll walk you out to your car."

"I'll be right back Dad." Lucy said as she and Will exited the house. Danny watched through the window in the door, Lindsay coming up behind him and wrapping her arms around his waist.

"She's growing up, isn't she?" She asked sadly as they watched the young couple say goodbye. Will leaned in for a kiss and to this, Danny rapped his knuckles on the glass loudly then shook his head when the two kids looked up at him.

"And I see you haven't." Lindsay commented with a laugh. They watched Will get into his car and Lucy make her way back to the house. When Will's car didn't turn on and Lucy made a face they could tell something was up. Will climbed out of his car and Lucy made her way over to him. They exchanged words and headed back towards the house at the same time Taylor entered the hallway with his overnight bag.

"Mom, I'm ready!" He said excitedly at the prospect of having his first sleepover on a school night.

"Okay honey, get your shoes on." Lindsay said as she went to get her coat.

"Can I have the car?" Lucy asked when she and Will came back into the house.

"For what?" Danny asked.

"Will's car won't start and he has to be home soon." Lucy explained while Will looked apologetic.

"I need it to take Taylor to Billy's house." Lindsay said putting her coat on.

"That's fine, I can take Taylor to Billy's for you." Lucy said looking at her brother.

"Where do you live Will?" Danny asked, unsure of the idea of his daughter driving her new boyfriend to his house. They gave him the address, and watched Danny's eyebrows furrow.

"Dad, his mom is home." Lucy said understanding her Dad's apprehension.

"Still, that's a ways away." Lindsay said a little bit worried.

"It'll be fine mom, I've driven that far before, it's no big." Lucy said grabbing the keys and her coat off of the hook next to the door.

"Alright, I guess so, but be careful okay?" Lindsay said shrugging out of her jacket. They said goodbye and the three of them headed out of the door, leaving the parents alone in the house. Once they had watched Lucy drive out of sight Danny turned to Lindsay.

"What is it, half hour to Will's house, plus the half hour back, plus the drive to Billy's and back home, that's what, hour and a half, hour forty-five?" Danny asked doing the math in his head, Lindsay saw where he was going and grinned.

"We can save the dishes for later." She said before kissing him and allowing him to carry her to their bedroom.

**This is a _Flack and Angell _fanfic all the way, however, I do have to set the ground works, so bear with me and tell me what you think!! So REVIEW!**


	3. Bruised Buzz Kills

"Taylor, you're going first." Lucy informed her brother who was seated in the backseat, he nodded at his sister through the rear view mirror, before plugging back into his ipod.

"So why aren't you staying somewhere?" Will asked Lucy.

"We go to different schools, so in order for me not be extremely late, he has to go in with a friend.

"So you're home alone?" He asked curiously, causing Lucy to laugh.

"Believe me it's not as exciting as it sounds."

"You have such a dirty mind," Will joked, "I didn't mean it like that."

"Well then how'd you mean it?"

"Ever since we moved to the city Mom's gone into over protective mode, she wouldn't let me stay home alone if her life depended on it." Will said with a sigh,

"You'd think at 17 she'd trust me enough to stay in a locked house, she almost didn't let me drive myself to school once I got my license."

"She's a Mom, sometimes they do they like to cling to their child from womb to tomb." Lucy explained as she turned off the highway.

"No, I wouldn't mind if she'd been like that since I was little, but it's just been since we moved to the city." He explained

"Give her a break, it's a new city, plus most people who don't know New York think it's dangerous, it's not half as bad as some cities, but it's big, and that scares people." Lucy explained kindly. That's just who she was, a kind person. She pulled up out front of Billy's house, Taylor quickly unbuckled, sprang forward to kiss his sister goodbye, before bolting out of the car with a barely audible goodbye to Will. They both laughed at his eagerness once he was out of the car as Lucy watched to make sure her brother got inside safely. When Billy's mom stepped out onto the Brownstone steps to usher Taylor in, she waved goodbye to Lucy, who waved back. Once the door shut Lucy put the car back in drive, but it wasn't far along the street before she pulled into an available spot and switched off the engine.

"My dad's a real buzz kill don't you think?" She asked Will with a grin, he smiled back and watched as she unbuckled and crossed the seat into his lap.

***

Flack had just dropped off his dry cleaning for the week as he stepped out into the cool autumn air. He took in a deep breath as he looked around his city. People were in a hurry to get to where they were going, taxi's were honking, things were in order. After a moment he made his way over to his car. He was about to get in when a familiar sight caught his eye. Three cars ahead of him was a parked car, with two people seated in the passenger seat, he was about to laugh it off when he realized whose car it was.

***

There was a tap on Will's window along with the flash of a badge, and although she couldn't see a face, she knew, no good could come of this, especially when she took into account what district she was in, and what precinct was just five blocks over. The second she saw the badge she knew it was one of them, and she may be able to get off with a warning, but there was now way juicy news like this wouldn't be getting back to her father.

"Oh perfect." Lucy grumbled, she rolled down the window and tried to look as apologetic as possible.

"Oh ho, who do we have here?" The voice shot through her and she realized _exactly_ how bad this was.

"Hi uncle Flack." She said meekly.

"Lucy Messer. I come over here to bust your parents, and I find you? Well," He reached into his pocket and pulled out his notepad and a pen. He began to scribble down little squiggly lines, as he leaned back on his heels and allowed is tongue to stick out just a bit as he tilted his head as if in concentration, true Flack style. He knew this would scare her, and out of the corner of his eyes he could see Lucy's eyes widening, he was going to get her good.

"So Lucy, I've got your name, what's his?" He asked using his pen to point to Will.

"Uncle Flack isn't there something I could do-" She began pleading.

"Oh no, no way you're getting out of this one." He said with a laugh before continuing to scribble,

"Name?" He asked without evening bothering to look up.

"William Donald Gerard." Will answered strongly, only Lucy could tell he was scared, between Danny's "Pep talk" and the officer in front of him, he had every reason to be.

"See that wasn't so hard." Flack said with a shrug and a grin as he flipped his notepad shut and looked at the two teens.

"Okay so what do you want?" Lucy asked, knowing she might be able to weasel her way out if there was something he wanted more.

"To uphold the law." He teased with mock severity, "It's my job, I honor my badge."

"Uncle Flack, please, I'll owe you one?" She had proceeded to begging, because if he officially wrote her up, that'd be it on the guy front for her.

"Well, maybe I could think of something," He said rubbing his chin, he could use it later to his advantage. The last time she had a secret on him, with nothing on her, the entire team found out that he had gone out with one of Lucy's teacher after filling in for Danny and Lindsay at a parent teacher conference.

"Thank you." She said letting out a sigh of relief.

"Don't thank me yet, where are you two off to?" He asked,

"I'm taking him home." Lucy answered honestly.

"Well, I've got nothing better to do, why don't I join you." Without even waiting for an answer he opened the passenger side door and jerked his thumb at Will, motioning for him to get out. Will complied and Lucy moved back to the driver's seat with an aggravated sigh. Will clambered into the back seat and the three of them began the drive to Will's.

"Uncle Flack, I'm just walking him in, okay?" She said turning to her uncle once they pulled up to a three story apartment building.

"I'd like her to meet my mother, Sir." Will added, trying to keep Flack's head from jumping to other conclusions. Flack looked between the two of them,

"Fine," He relented, "But, I'm coming in." He said beginning to open the door.

"Uncle Flack, please." Lucy said sternly. Flack looked at her, then pulled the door he had opened back close.

"Ten minutes, anymore than that and I'm coming in." He said pointing at her to make sure she got it. Lucy agreed and she and Will exited the car. He watched them walk up to the small house.

"Are you nervous?" Will asked Lucy incredulously as he pulled the keys out of his pocket.

"Maybe." Lucy admitted with a smile. Once Will turned the knob and opened the door, he took her hand and lead her inside,

"Don't be." He assured her, closing the door behind him.

"Mom!" He called out,

"In the kitchen." A voice called, it was deep, and a bit scratchy and unlike anything Lucy had ever heard, it was beautiful. Will lead Lucy down a hallways, into a kitchen. There was a woman standing with her back to them. Her chestnut hair was in two braids that were pulled over each of her shoulders and she was scrubbing dishes in the sink.

"Mom, there's someone I'd like you to meet." Will said, pulling Lucy forward and causing his mother to turn around. Her eyes were a deep chocolate brown, which were half covered by side sweeping bangs that she pushed out of the way.

"You must be Lucy." She said graciously. She wiped her hands on a towel, before holding out a hand to Lucy, who shook it.

"I'm Addison Gerard." She said with a big smile.

"Lucy Messer." Lucy replied with a smile, upon hearing her name, Addison's smiled faltered for a moment as she stared at Lucy, and for some reason, Lucy found herself staring back. Something in the back of her mind was telling her that she recognized the woman before her, she just couldn't place it. Like when you see an actor in a movie and can't remember what other movie or tv show you've seen them in. At the sound of Will clearing his throat, the two broke their stares with chagrined laughter,

"Sorry." They both said at the same time,

"Lucy. That's a very pretty name." Addison complemented.

"Thank you." Lucy said before frowning a bit, "Um, do I know you from somewhere Mrs. Gerard?"

"Please, call me Addison," She corrected before continuing, "You've probably seen me around school, I used to pick William up everyday." Addison clarified.

"Of course, that must be it." Lucy agreed, but a piece of her wasn't totally convinced.

"So was he good?" She asked turning to her son and playfully ruffling his hair before kissing him on the cheek. Lucy smiled,

"He was beyond amazing." She complemented,

***

Flack sat in the car watching the seconds tick by on his clock. He loved Lucy Messer, and only wanted the best for her. But he knew trying to go in with them had been too much, he could remember the last time he had gotten too over protective and it nearly pushed someone he loved over the edge.

***

_Jessica Angell was still contemplating what her partner had said earlier, "She looked good in a vest," she found herself smiling as the two of them searched the second floor of the building. She watched as Flack signaled to a door, she nodded, since she was closer, she slowly pushed the door open. The sound of a shotgun rang loud and clear through the still air, _

_"Jess!" Without hesitation Donald Flack Jr. jumped to his partners aid, pulling her out of harms way and slamming her into the ground under him to cover her from the onslaught of gun fire that never came. _

_"Jesus Christ, Ow!" He heard a voice beneath him,_

_When he looked up he saw a shotgun, who's trigger was tied to a piece of string, one Angell had tripped by accident as they had entered. _

_"Are you okay?" He asked, looking her over to see if she was seriously hurt,_

_"Aside from the bruises that's going to leave, I'm fine, nothing a beer, pizza, and a good night's sleep can't fix," She said with a laugh that caused her to wince. He got up, carefully pulling her up with him. As she stood the shotgun pellets clattered as the fell harmlessly to the ground and bounced around their feet. Flack reached out and brushed away the stubborn one's that still clung to her vest._

_"Jess, you shouldn't be alone." He said worried with the possibility of her injury being something more serious,_

_"Why, you volunteering?" She asked with a playful grin. Both of them had been skirting around the sexual tension that had surrounded them since the car incident when she caught him trying to flirt. They had almost acted upon it after grabbing an Irish coffee together, but nothing happened. Now here they were, trying to make light of a decision that could effect them forever._

_"I-" Flack began, but was cut off when Danny and Lindsay burst through the open door, guns drawn. After seeing there was no danger, they both holstered there weapons,_

_"You two okay?" Danny asked, they both nodded. "We found something downstairs, but when we heard the shots we came running,"_

_"Angell, you're hit." Lindsay commented, pointing to the gaping whole the shot had left in Angell's vest._

_"It's fine, what'd you get." She asked brushing it off, Danny and Lindsay both exited the room, she caught eyes briefly with a worried Flack before looking away following them out._

***

_The next day Angell reached up to the top shelf of the break room, silently cursing whoever had moved her cup so high. She stood on her tip toes, and stretched up as high as she could before a sharp pain shot through her side. She nearly fell over as she tried to stop the stinging, wincing to herself,_

_"I saw that." A familiar voice accused from the doorway. She turned around, Flack was staring at her, leaning against the doorway with his arms folded across his chest as he watched her. At his expression, she looked away sheepishly._

_"Saw what?" She asked nonchalantly with a shrug, turning away from him. He walked up to her and without even looking she could tell he wasn't happy._

_"Jess, how bad is it?" He asked severely, she turned back around to face him._

_"It's nothing," She said with a shrug, "But, uh, could you get my mug for me?" She asked hopefully, knowing full well he would never do it, but he surprised her by reaching up behind her and taking her cup off the shelf. _

_"Thanks." She said with a sigh._

_"No problem." He said sternly, she held out her hand for it, but he didn't give it to her, he held it out of her reach, teasing her with it. She didn't bother reaching for it, knowing she couldn't,_

_"Come on Jess, reach for it." He said with a frown, as if it was something easy for her to do, when she didn't he set the cup on the counter,_

_"Come with me." He said sternly,_

_"Flack I'm fine." She insisted,_

_"Then what's the issue? Just come with me." He said, he was near pleading, which was something he had never done much before, it was so subtle to a normal person it would just look like he was just asking. She finally nodded and followed him out of the break room. The inconspicuously walked up to the second floor of the precinct, to an empty storage room. He opened the door and pulled her in before locking the door behind them. He flicked on the light switch and the two found themselves staring at each other._

_"How bad is it?" He started._

_"It's nothing, just a couple of bruises." She answered with a shrug._

_"How bad are they?" He asked more specifically, her hesitancy at answering was enough of an answer for him._

_"Let me see." He instructed._

_"No, Flack it's no big deal-" She began,_

_"Jess, cut the bull shit, you could barely sit down when you came in this morning, then that incident in the break room. Let's see them." He said forcefully, he took a step closer to her, and watched her carefully. Her eyes met his much to her dismay, ever since their incident of excessive flirting in the car, she found it to be increasingly hard to deny him much of anything, and the way he was looking at her made it even harder._

_"Lift up your shirt." He instructed softly,_

_"Excuse me?" She asked, snapping out of it._

_"Lift up your shirt." He said again, making her stomach tingle, this was not how she'd pictured their first time in this situation._

_"Yeah, ok." She said, and she tried to push past him, but he stopped her._

_"Look Jess, the way I see it you have two options, either you can let me see it now, and I may not send you to the hospital, or I can go tell the captain, and he can make you go the hospital, wether it's bad or not, but it's up to you." He said finally._

_"You wouldn't." He folded his arms and smiled smugly,_

_"Try me." He said defiantly. She began to curse under her breath in French, as she turned away from him, hands on the hem of her shirt. Both paused for a moment as they realized what was about to happen, nevertheless, they proceeded, realizing, after this it would be very hard to go back. She pulled her shirt completely over her head, Flack muttered a curse as he saw her exposed shoulders. She didn't move as he approached her, pushing her hair off of her shoulders so he could see the full extent of the bruises. Fan like bruises cover the backs of her shoulders, where her vest hadn't given adequate exposure. Deep purple splotches disfigured her pristine tan skin. He cursed himself internally for pushing her down so hard. He had never meant to hurt her, he thought he was protecting her. His fingers reached out of their own accord, gently brushing over the damaged skin, he heard Angell let out a soft sigh, and he retracted his hand, thinking he was causing her more pain. Little did he know, it was having quite to opposite effect on her, his cool touch was the first tactile sense of relief she had felt since she had fallen in the first place. Flack wished he could get rid of the pain for her, but he knew there was nothing he could do for bruises, they just had to heal over time._

_"I bruise easy." She said softly. Angell was good at sensing what her partner's thoughts, especially his. Flack frowned,_

_"I'm sorry," he whispered._

_"Don't be, you were trying to save my life. See it's nothing," She said as she began to pull her shirt back on, but Flack had come to sense what his partner was thinking as well, and could tell she was hiding something. He stopped her, resting a hand gently on hers._

_"Turn around Jess." He said softly, she looked back over her shoulder at him, before nodding, though she didn't need to, and turning around slowly. His eyes widened as he gaped at her stomach, he barely even registered that she was standing shirtless in front of him, word ceased to exist for him as he stared at her stomach. There encompassing her entire lower torso, was a jagged circle bruise. It was an array of colors, green, blue, yellow, purplish black and even in some spots a reddish color. A list of possible injuries ran through his mind, internal bleeding, no, it would have effected her sooner, broken rib, no the bruises would have been higher up, there could have been more things, but his high school diploma wouldn't be very helpful,_

_"You have to go to the hospital," he said forcefully, her face fell._

_"Come on, I'll drive you." He said, he didn't know why, but he felt protective of her, as if no one else could drive her, but him. _

_"Flack, I can't." She said stopping him as she slid her shirt back on and pushed past him, he took her arm and turned to face her._

_"Jess, this isn't up for debate. We're going to the hospital, get your coat and I'll meet you at the car." He said decidedly._

_"No, __Don__, I can't, the captain offered me the spot as the undercover in this assignment, this is huge, if I'm in the hospital, even though I can function, it goes to someone else. Flack, this is huge for me." She explained trying to convince him of this, but he wasn't buying it._

_"Jess you can't do undercover if you're injured." He argued. _

_"I don't care, Flack, you know as well as I do bruises don't count as injuries." He knew she was right, it was just a bruise, she would be fine, but he was just worried that she would further her injury, he couldn't stomach that._

_"This is a big deal for me."_

_"But it won't be when you screw it up." He snapped back loudly. She yanked her arm out of his hand and took a step back from him as though he had smacked her. _

_"I do _not_ screw up." She said icily, chilling him to the core. He wished he could take the words he had so carelessly let slip back, but it was too late. She walked out of the storage room, slamming the door and leaving him standing alone._

He let out a sigh as wiped his face down with his palms, trying to clear away the memory. When Flack looked up he saw the shadow of someone at the window behind a curtain, but then looked away as he was distracted by Will leaning forward and kissing Lucy gently on the cheek on the front porch. His heart softened at the tenderness of the sight. When they parted, Will watched until Lucy got to the driver's side door. He waved to her, and she waved back before he entered the building and out of sight.

"Him really?" Flack asked Lucy jerking a thumb out his window as if she didn't get who he was talking about once she got in the car. Lucy just shook her head,

"Yes, him." Flack didn't miss the tiny uplight in the corners of her mouth. It was a lover's smile, not lover's like an excessive amount of sex, but lover, as in people who loved each other. At this his heart ached as he longed for what they had, knowing the last time he had felt that was so long ago,

"Okay, I guess I could give in," To this Lucy beamed up at her uncle, it was his approval, after her father's, that she sought the most,

"But, if I ever see him around family, you know what that means." He said seriously.

"Yep total hard-ass, no holds barred, even if you see him on his own, you still, by all appearances sake, 'hate him'." Lucy agreed with an unwavering grin,

"And make sure he knows, tonight,-"

"Never happened," She finished for him, "Thank you." She said sincerely. He nodded.

"Now let's go, I'm getting' old over here." He joked, lightening the mood. She laughed and they began to talk about how things were going while they drove down the street, and away from the house.


End file.
